This month’s aerial photo shows the Queen’s Medical Centre which was the first purpose-built teaching hospital in the UK. It was officially opened by the Queen in 1977. The photo was taken by Robin Macey who is a member of Nottingham & Derby Hot Air Balloon Club. The club is currently looking to expand. Members take turns being on the chase crew as well as flying in the basket. For further details about how to get involved phone 0115-8541028 or visit www.facebook.com/ndhabc Photo by Robin Macey
A review of Cinderella at Nottingham’s Theatre royal.
It is a delight for all the family, from the youngsters all the way up to the grandparents in the audience. This year the Theatre Royal has pulled out all the stops to give families a brilliant Christmas evening out with their production of Cinderella with amazing sets, fabulous song and dance routines, bright and colouful costumes, lots of magic and illusions and even a spectacular coach ride, complete with animatronic flying horses, delivers a mind-boggling feast for the eyes.
In a fairy-tale kingdom, poor Cinderella is a servant to her cruel ugly sisters. When a handsome prince invites all the maidens of the land to his party, she only has rags to wear. With the help of her friend Buttons and a sprinkling of magic from her Fairy Godmother, will she make it to the ball after all?
This year’s must-see, magical pantomime stars Corrie’s Connor McIntyre (Pat Phelan) and comedian and actor Les Dennis as the Ugly Sisters, alongside Gareth Gates as Prince Charming. Joining them are Richard Cadell as Buttons and Kimberley Blake as the Fairy Godmother. Jack McNeill plays the role of Dandini. Jack is returning to the Theatre Royal following his star turn in last year’s pantomime as Peter Pan. Hannah Grace Lawson makes her pantomime debut as Cinderella after recently starring in the West End as first cover for Cosette in Les Miserables. Sooty appears as himself with lots of magic and a water pistol!
Brought to you by Qdos Entertaiment, Cinderella features a fabulous cast and orchestra, laugh out loud comedy, stunning scenery, special effects and plenty of boos and hisses for all the family to enjoy.
Cinderella is high energy and infectiously good fun from the moment the curtain goes up in act one. There is a constant stream of local references, great dance routines, plenty of laughs and a high energy performance by Richard Cadell who stole the show with his comedy and magic.
Cinderella runs at the Nottingham Theatre Royal until Sunday January 5th with tickets available from only £18. You can book online at www.trch.co.uk or by calling the box office on 0115 989 5555
Members of a bowls club are celebrating after securing their first qualifications as coaches that will encourage more players to get involved in the sport. Maurice Price, Richard Bailey, Val Finch, Sue Bailey, Meryl Hudson and Richard Teare from Rushcliffe Indoor Bowls Club have all achieved their Level 1 Certificate in Coaching Bowls.
The six members received support from Rushcliffe Borough Council’s Coach Scholarship Scheme last year with 50 per cent support towards the training costs, match funded by the English Indoor Bowling Association. It will mean they can now offer more coaching sessions and will be running taster sessions at their Rushcliffe Arena base in the coming months to recruit new members.
Deputy Leader Cllr Debbie Mason met the group to congratulate them on their first step of the coaching ladder. The club’s Publicity Officer Irene Herod was delighted the players have now achieved the qualification. She said: “This will really help more potential players of all ages to get involved and come and have a go at the sport. Well done to the coaches, they can’t wait to get going and welcome more new players to the club.
“We offer friendly and league matches, internal competitions and social bowling sessions as well as coaching and a dedicated junior section. “Anyone wishing to join us to have a taster session or to play in our local leagues should email irene.herod@btconnect.com or call 0115 933 5202.” The news follows investment from Rushcliffe Borough Council last year that saw a new laser levelled floor and carpet to make games faster and fairer at the Arena facility.
With children about to start their summer holidays and hopefully temperatures rising throughout August, being safe around water is vital. The Partnership’s members which includes Nottinghamshire County Council, Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service, Nottinghamshire Police, The Royal Life Saving Society and the Royal National Lifeboat Institute, wants to stress that being water aware whether in or adjacent to water is essential. Also attending the event will be Nicola Jenkins, who tragically lost her 12-year-old son Owen in July 2017 when he valiantly rescued two girls who got into difficulties at Beeston Weir.
He managed to get them to safety, but he lost his footing and was sucked under the water. In his memory, Nicola set up OWEN – the Open Water Education Network – to educate people about being safe around water and to prevent further tragic loss of lives. Coun Kay Cutts, Leader of Nottinghamshire County Council, will welcome partners to the 3 hour event, along with the Canal and River Trust, the county council’s schools swimming team and flood risk management team, Via East Midlands Flood Management team and Year 6 pupils from schools around Rushcliffe.
Coun Cutts said: “It is so important that we get water safety messages across to children and young people especially at this time of the year. “Being aware of what to do if you see someone in trouble in the water can save a life so surely there’s no better incentive.
“Water safety awareness also needs to be promoted to adults and being able to swim must be a key message for everyone, regardless of how old you are.” The Underwater Search Team from Nottinghamshire Police will conduct a training dive to show people how they rescue someone in trouble and the RNLI will discuss cold water shock and ways to respect the water. Speedo, a member of the Water Safety Partnership, will provide prizes for competitions taking place during the 3-hour event.
This month’s aerial photo shows the 18th century stable block at Wollaton Park. This was once home to Nottingham Police horses but today houses a courtyard café and gallery and Nottingham Industrial Museum.
The photo was taken by Robin Macey who is a member of Nottingham & Derby Hot Air Balloon Club. The club is currently looking to expand. Members take turns being on the chase crew as well as flying in the basket. For further details about how to get involved phone 0115-8541028 or visit www.facebook.com/ndhabc.
This year’s Splendour
had sold out in record time, shifting an incredible 25,000 tickets to
the good folk of Nottingham (although not exclusively to
Nottinghamshire folk). Splendour returned to Wollaton Hall for
another day of musical delights. This year the organisers had pulled
out all the stops to create a line up which would make all other
musical events green with envy.
Rag N Bone Man at Splendour 2019 – image credit – Jake Haseldine
As always it feels like
the organisers attempted to cater for all types of music fans and
this year, they had ticked all the right boxes. Rock music category
was covered by having none other than Manic Street Preachers
headlining after a decade of not playing in Nottingham. Pop music
fans were well catered for with the All Saints and Louisa. Then for
all of us older music fans, there were blasts into the 80s from
Roland Gift (Fine Young Cannibals) . For the younger generation of
fans there were current artistes such as Rag ‘n’ Bone man and The
Slow Readers Book Club, and The Rifles and the X Factor winner
Louisa.
If fans got bored of
the music that was on offer, punters could wander over to the comedy
stage. The organisers also provided fun for children with fair rides
and other activities available. Without a shadow of doubt this is one
of those events that can be fun for all the family.
Kids Area at Splendour 2019 image credit – Ami Ford
Sadly, the one thing
the organisers had no control over was the weather, and unfortunately
if you were unlucky to be there right at the start, you would have
got drenched and spent the rest of the day drying out throughout the
glorious sunshine.
Upon
arrival there were hundreds of people carrying camping chairs and
picnics to take inside the arena. Security were friendly enough and
were patient whilst ticket holders opened all their bags to be
checked.
Once inside the
exquisite grounds of Wollaton Hall, thousands of music fans had
already set out their camping chairs and picnic mats to set up and
wait for the musical delights that were scheduled to entertain the
awaiting fans.
First up was Remy
(Winner of Nottingham’s Future Sound) he entertained the ample
sized crowd with his acoustic guitar melodies. During Remy’s set
the glorious sunshine quickly turned to rain. In a flash the crowd
were transformed from a t-shirt wearing mob into a mass of
waterproofs and umbrellas.
Due to the downpour,
the main stage bands had to do their best against a crowd who were
getting soaked. Rob Green, Barns Courtney and The Slow Readers Club
all tried to take the crowds mind of the weather.
The sunshine made an
appearance just as Louisa (X-Factor Winner) won over the crowd with
her incredible vocals and lively stage persona.
The audience then
quadrupled in size for the arrival of the Rag ‘n’ Bone Man. If
you love his voice through the radio, it is even more incredible
live. He saved “Human” until the end of his set creating a huge
sing along amongst the crowd. A genuine all-time favourite Splendour
moment.
After spending most of
the day in front of the main stage, it was time to see what was
happening on the Confetti stage. Thankfully Roland Gift (Fine Young
Cannibals) was captivating the audience with a trip down memory lane
with hits such as “Johnny Come Home” and “She Drives
Me Crazy” as well as a cover version of Elvis Presley’s
“Suspicious Minds”. Even after all these years Roland’s
vocals sound as sweet as they did back in the 80s.
All Saints at Splendour 2019 – image credit – Jake Haseldine
The All Saints
headlined the Confetti stage and they brought their A game with them.
All four members looking just as wonderful as they did back in the
late 90s/early 2000. This performance was slick. Extremely
well-choreographed with delightful vocal melodies throughout songs
such as “Booty Call”, “Under The Bridge”, and
“Pure Shores” in some ways it was too polished almost
superhuman until they had a technical difficulty and then they
became unsure if they should talk to the crowd or wait for the
technical difficulty to be sorted. Nonetheless, a great powerful, pop
fuelled injection to the day.
Manic Street Preachers
headlined the main stage with their blend of rock. Opening with the
catchy “Motorcycle Emptiness”, although at times it was
difficult to hear the guitar solos from James Dean Bradfield. (This
may have been due to the breeze flowing across the site). In no time
at all they had ploughed through a back catalogue of hits such as
“Everything Must Go”, “You Love Us” and “If
You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next”. As well as
squeezing in a cover version of Guns N Roses “Sweet Child O’
Mine” which created a heart-warming sing along from the fans.
Mani Street Preachers at Splendour 2019
image credit – Jake Heseldine
Manic Street Preachers
saved “Design for Life” until the end of their set, as is
usual with the Welsh rockers they very rarely do encores, and tonight
they stuck with tradition and did not oblige the fans with an encore.
Nonetheless, A masterclass in how to headline a music event.
Hopefully they won’t leave it another ten years before playing in
Nottingham again. The only disappointment was that they left “Faster”
out of their setlist.
Splendour 2019 was a
fabulous family friendly day out, with one of their best line ups
since Splendour started. The only difficulty the organisers have now
is how do they make Splendour 2020 even better??
With just over one week to go, the Wollaton Park music festival, headlined by Manic Street Preachers and The Specials, is heading for a sell-out.
An additional name has also been added to the bill. Joining the line-up of international stars, exciting new artists and established favourites is singer-songwriter, Remy. After impressing judges and winning ‘Future Sound of Nottingham’ at Rock City against six other local artists, he will open Splendour and rub shoulders with the likes of Manic Street Preachers, The Specials, Rag’n’Bone, The Slow Readers Club and Rob Green on the Main Stage. Main Stage 21:00 – 22:30 Manic Street Preachers 19:00 – 20:15 The Specials 17:30 – 18:30 Rag‘n’Bone Man 16:30 – 17:00 Louisa 15:30 – 16:00 The Slow Readers Club 14:30 – 15:00 Barns Courtney 13:30 – 14:00 Rob Green 12:30 – 13:00 Remy
Confetti Stage 20:15 – 21:15 All Saints 18:30 – 19:30 Roland Gift (FYC) 17:00 – 17:45 Ash 16:00 – 16:30 The Rifles 15:00 – 15:30 The Coronas 14:00 – 14:30 Do Nothing 13:00 – 13:30 Bria 12:00 – 12:30 Ava Saint
Courtyard Stage 20:30 – 21:00 My Pet Fauxes 19:30 – 20:00 Mid November 18:30 – 19:00 Esther Van Leuven 17:30 – 18:00 Megatrain 16:30 – 17:00 Velvet Blush 15:30 – 16:00 94 Gunships 14:30 – 15:00 Re Teu 13:30 – 14:00 Laurie Illingworth 12:30 – 13:00 Camille Christel
Comedy Stage 18:00 – 18:30 Suzy Bennett 17:00 – 17:30 Roger Monkhouse 16:00 – 16:30 Vince Atta 15:00 – 15:30 Sean Heydon 14:00 – 14:30 Nathan Caton With compère Andy Robinson
Fringe Stage 17:15- 17:45 The Bar-Steward Sons of Val Doonican 16:00 -16:30 Mrs Green 15:00 -15:30 Rhymes Against Humanity 14:00 -14:30 Salsa with Salsa Bae 13:00 -13:30 Spoken Word with Stephen & Friends 12:00 -12:30 Yoga and Mindfulness session
The award-winning music event takes place at Wollaton Park on Saturday 20 July. Children under 11 will once again be admitted free and discounts are also in place for Nottingham City residents. Including booking fee, a standard ticket is £56.65, coming down to £45.65 when the Nottingham City discount is applied. Tickets for Nottingham City residents aged 11-17 are £22. VIP packages are also available and start from £87.65 for a Nottingham City adult.
Tickets can be purchased from the newly launched website splendourfestival.com or in person from the Nottingham Tourism Centre. To claim Nottingham City resident discount, a copy of your council tax bill is required.
To stay in touch with festival news follow Splendour on social media: Facebook: @splendourfestivalUK Twitter: @splendourfest Instagram: @splendourfest #SplendourFest.
Download Festival
returned to Donington Park for 3 days of pure rock music. This
mammoth extravaganza now in its 17th year is a highlight
in the festival calendar, boasting a line-up that included Slipknot,
Def Leppard and Tool as headliners, you would be hard pushed to find
any other festival with such established names.
Unlike other festivals
where they rely on just the headliners to pull in the punters,
Download Festival also ensure that the non headliners are just as
appealing. Acts such as legendary guitarist Slash playing with Myles
Kennedy and the Conspirators, Smashing Pumpkins, Trivium, and
Whitesnake all worthy of catching live on their own, let alone
together at one event.
As always Download try
to put on little gems just to add that extra sparkle to their rock
music crown. These are bands that are formed by individuals from
other famous bands and if you don’t do your research you might miss
them.
One band that could be
considered a gem, were the main stage opening act Last in
Line. Created from the
former members of Dio, surprisingly even Vivian Campbell (guitarist)
managed to be awake early enough to ensure that the band was ready to
go on time, despite also performing as part of the headline act Def
Leppard later in the evening.
One other such band on
Friday was Deadland Ritual. Comprising of Geezer Butler (Black
Sabbath) Matt Sorum (ex-Guns N Roses) Steve Stevens (Billy Idol
guitarist) and vocalist Franky Perez (Apocalyptica) they impressed
the crowd with their brand of rock on the Zippo Encore stage.
Over the weekend there
were numerous issues with the merchandise stalls accepting card
payments, some punters waiting over an hour to get to the front of
the queue just to be told that the card machines weren’t working.
Better communication would have been appreciated. A hoodie would have
set you back £45. Drinks such as Pepsi were £3.50 for their version
of a large size. Alcohol prices started at £4.50 all the way to over
£16 for a bottle of wine. Tea and coffee were around £2. There was
a whole variety of food stalls, ranging from £5 for doughnuts up to
£9.50 for Filled Yorkshire puddings.
Unfortunately, despite
Download having a stellar line up, the weather was not playing ball.
Biblical downpours and endless mud were the conditions for this
festival. Occasionally, the sun would make appearance to tease the
rock fans to remind them of what could have been. As the saying goes
“Julia Cesar and the Roman Empire couldn’t conquer the blue
skies” neither could the organisers of Download.
Whitesnake managed to
create one of the biggest responses from the crowd, with their blend
of tongue in cheek sing-along anthems. Although it was hard to tell
if it was Whitesnake material or the fleeting appearance of sunshine
that sparked the audience into life. Vocalist David Coverdale tried
to get the audience to sing a long and at times it fell flat. However
musically the band are still a tour de force when it comes to playing
live, although it did feel like most people watching were just
waiting for the classic hit “Here I Go Again” rather than
all of the other material that they did back in the 80’s such as
“Still of the Night”.
There were plenty of
highlights throughout the weekend, with so many bands it would be
hard not to find something to like, in summary some of my personal
highlights were Slash with Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators
performing a setlist that wasn’t heavily reliant on Guns N Roses
tracks. (Ok so they did slip in ‘Night Train’, but they
can be forgiven for that one).
Seeing Def Leppard
perform the album “Hysteria” in its entirety brought back lots
of memories and appeared to be well received by the rain-soaked
crowd.
Bad Wolves performing
their version of “Zombie” was probably one of the more poignant
highlights of the weekend. Dedicating it to Delores O’ Riordan.
Slipknot were another
phenomenal highlight, a performance that was high octane from the
opening notes of “People=S##t” to the dying notes of their
final song “Surfacing”. It was a masterclass in taking the
music to the fans.
Also, Slayer performing
what has been widely publicised as their last ever UK appearance was
a set list designed to please the fans one last time. Songs such as
“Raining Blood” and “South of Heaven” sent the
crowd into a frenzy. Fingers crossed that it isn’t the last time
Slayer play live in the UK.
Another amazing
Download Festival, albeit a muddy one. The only issue the organisers
have now, is how do they make 2020 even more rocktastic!!
Get Fired-up for BBQ Season with The School of Artisan Food
Burnt sausages, raw chicken and other BBQ horrors can be consigned to the dustbin of history as The School of Artisan Food shares the secrets of cooking with fire and smoke ahead of the summer season.
Based on the idyllic Welbeck Estate in the heart of Sherwood Forest, the school is running a series of one day courses throughout the summer designed for anybody who wants to avoid the common mistakes of alfresco dining and become a BBQ master.
Led by expert butcher Chris Moorby along with his son Tom Moorby, Fire & Smoke – BBQ Cooking is a hands-on course that reveals how to work with this most ancient of artisan cooking techniques and create a range of delicious dishes over charcoal.
Alongside practical demonstrations, they will share their years of BBQ experience and demonstrate how to make the most of cooking with the distinctive tastes of wood or smoke. They’ll also show how to make the perfect BBQ sauce from a mouth-watering combination of chilli flakes, white onion and garlic in a passata, red wine vinegar and tomato puree base – a recipe created by his son Tom Moorby (full recipe available upon request).
It’s a hands-on masterclass for both BBQ novices and seasoned campaigners in how to prepare and grill a selection of meats, fish and vegetables; as well as make delicious marinades, sauces and dry rubs and how best to use traditional smoking techniques.
After cooking a range of foods, including red meats, poultry, cheeses and even sweets, newly acquired BBQ skills are shared in a jointly cooked meal from the grill before going home for the ultimate test amongst family and friends.
The one day course is available on dates from June to October. For more information, visit www.schoolofartisanfood.org
This month’s aerial photo shows Nottingham Castle covered in scaffolding halfway through its £30m two year renovation. The project will see new galleries, a new visitor centre, remodelled grounds and improved access to caves in the hill beneath. The castle will reopen to the public in summer 2020. The photo was taken by Robin Macey who is a member of Nottingham & Derby Hot Air Balloon Club. The club is currently looking to expand. Members take turns being on the chase crew as well as flying in the basket. For further details about how to get involved phone 0115-8541028 or visit www.facebook.com/ndhabc.
Nottingham News, Notts Leisure
